Texas Rangers’ Adrian Beltre says spring debut ‘better than expected,’ still hoping to play in WBC

Dallas Morning News | Mar 5

Texas Rangers third baseman Adrian Beltre said his spring-training debut went “better than expected.”

Beltre, limited in camp by a strained calf muscle, played five innings in the field and handled two chances. He also had a double in three at-bats and twice ran the bases without difficulty. He is scheduled to play again on Wednesday.

Beltre remains committed to joining the Dominican Republic for the second round of the World Baseball Classic. That is not a given. In the previous WBC, in 2009, the Dominican suffered an embarrassing first-round exit with a loss to the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

“Last time wasn’t pretty,” Beltre said. “I hope they do a better job than they did last time.”

Beltre was not with the Dominican club in the previous WBC. Team general manager Moises Alou, a former major-leaguer, said there will be a tighter rein on this club. In 2009, a group of players returned to Boca Chica, D.R., for a party before the game against the Netherlands, in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

“They probably took that team too lightly,” Beltre said. “This year, we’re going to be more hungry, knowing we have to play harder.”